Bloodline

~ Chapter 11 ~

Gideon returned home two days later. He was anxious to see Mia and make sure everything was alright, though he called Chris several times during his stay in Innsbruck. He just wanted to go back to Mia.

Once outside the airport, Gideon walked some way from it and flashed home – that way was so much faster than taking a taxi. He barged through the doors of the house and found silence. He quickly searched through the rooms, but both Mia and Chris were nowhere to be found. He reached for his phone and dialed his friend, but he didn't pick up even after the second try. With a quick decision, Gideon turned around and ran to Mia's apartment. He entered the apartment like he usually did, but the fact that the balcony door was opened fazed him. It was freezing outside and surely Mia wouldn't leave it opened for the cold air to get in.

He closed the door silently, and then looked around the apartment. They weren't there either, though Mia's scent was strong – she was here not a while ago. He was set to leave, but muffled sounds from the bedroom stopped him and he frowned in confusion as he turned in that direction. He soundlessly started towards the door but what he didn't expect to discover was the body of his friend lying on the floor behind the sofa. He quickly crouched beside Chris, grasping him by his shoulders and shook him. With no response, he scanned all over his friend's body and found no evidence that he was staked. Relaxing a notch, he lowered Chris back on the floor, hoping that he would recover quickly from his neck being snapped. But if Chris was here, unconscious, that meant that Mia was without protection.

Gideon cursed under his breath and rose to his feet. His attention quickly changed to what was happening and the sounds that were coming from behind the bedroom door and he knew he had to act fast. Mia was most likely in there, and judging by what happened to his friend, she was in danger. Approaching the door, he steadied his breath and silently turned the knob.

At first he couldn't believe what he saw, but as the initial surprise faded he recognized the man on top of Mia and instinct kicked in. With swift moves, he pushed Cassius off of Mia, slamming him into the wall and holding him by the throat. His fangs elongated and his face contorted as anger was building and cursing through his veins.

"Well, well, if it isn't my dear friend, Gideon." Cassius showed off his bloodied fangs as his lips spread into a wicked smirk, not at least fazed by the arm pinning him to the wall. "Care to join us? I'm sure Mia here would love to share the fun with you, too." He wanted to turn his head to look at Mia, but he didn't want to risk losing the upper hand on Cassius. He couldn't lose focus and let him out of his grip. He was counting on Chris to awaken soon, but he didn't know how long ago he got his neck snapped.

"What kind of a sick game do you think you're playing? If you're holding something against me, you should have come straight to me and not get your fucking hands on Mia. She has no fault in anything that happened between us," Gideon snarled as the little control he still had over himself was fading.

"Ah, but you see, it's more fun to play by your rules." Cassius looked too smug and relaxed despite the strong arms pinning him to the wall. Gideon slammed him harder into the wall, an indentation forming behind his body.

"What rules, Cassius? We sorted everything between us; there is nothing for you to want with me."

Suddenly, Cassius pushed away from the wall and spun them both at inhuman speed so Gideon was now trapped between the wall and his body. For a second Gideon lost focus in surprise, but quickly recollected himself; he had to keep him occupied for a little longer before Chris would come and help.

"There you are wrong, my dear friend," Cassius's face changed from smug to lethal, ready to take action at any moment. "It's only fair I take the one you care for most, just like you did so many years ago." Gideon felt the hard slam against his back and hissed lowly.